1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the art of display devices and more particularly to a display rack extension having a horizontal shelf support secured at its center to the upper end of the vertical leg of a display rack for supporting a shelf on both sides of the vertical leg of the display rack extension.
2. Prior Art
Display racks, having a pair of spaced upright supports, have become quite commonplace in retail outlets throughout the United States. The upright supports generally support a number of shelves therebetween which are adapted to display merchandise.
The display rack thus far described has enjoyed great commercial success and has been generally accepted by retailers for displaying their wares and goods. The display racks, however, do suffer the disadvantage that the space above the display rack is generally wasted. Since space in a retail outlet is not only limited but also expensive, a number of display rack extensions have been previously known to extend or increase the height of the display rack.
One form of previously known display rack extensions typically takes the form of a right angle shelf support. One end of the right angle support attaches to the upper end of the upright support for the display rack so that the lower leg of the extension is generally vertical while the upper leg of the rack extension is horizontal and forms a support for a shelf in an elevated position above the display rack. It will be appreciated that two rack extensions are normally required for each display rack, i.e. one extension per upright support.
The previously known display rack extensions suffer many disadvantages unknown to the present invention. Primarily, the previously known extensions are unstable and a slight jolt to the display rack often results in merchandise falling to the floor. Falling merchanise not only damages the merchandise but also presents a safety hazard to the retailer's customers.
Previously known display rack extensions also have had a tendency to sag downwardly due to the weight of merchandise on the shelf thereby causing the merchandise to drop to the floor and resulting in the same abovementioned problems.